Should Ashley Young start? :How Moyes can beat Manchester City

Manchester United fans might groan at the sight of Ashley Young in their starting line up,but Young’s versatility and defensive workrate is needed for United,especially if they play Kagawa on the left. David Moyes has to be ready for a surprise or two,if City start with Jesus Navas to exploit the space left by Kagawa,then United will be in trouble. So Moyes can then switch Kagawa on the right and Young to the left. This is not possible if Antonio Valencia is selected ahead of Young on the right. But you can expect David Moyes to drop Kagawa and play 2 of Welbeck/Kagawa/Valencia.

Defending Narrow?Last season,the trick to beat City was to play narrow and deep. As City didn’t have any pure wingers and they didn’t have a center forward in good goal scoring form,they struggled to score from crosses.But this season,with the full backs in rampaging form and have targets in Dzeko and Negredo,defending narrow isn’t an option at all.

Play a Trivote

Taking a cue from Jose Mourinho’s book,Moyes can bolster the center midfield by playing someone like Fletcher on the right wing. This will essentially nullify David Silva’s movement inward. A double pivot of Michael Carrick and Fellaini will easily be overwhelmed by Yaya Toure,Fernandinho and Silva moving inside and probably even Nasri cutting inside. If United had enough fit Center Backs, Phil Jones would have been a good option for this role.

Juan Mata has to be central.Juan Mata finally showed what a good player he can be if played behind the striker against West Ham. City don’t have a typical holding midfielder and both Yaya and Dinho are box to box. So Mata will have time on the ball to pick out passes. But David Moyes shouldn’t revert back to playing Mata on the left.